The price of petrol

Everyone is talking about it... the price rise in UK petrol. It dominated the press throughout April and we were told that petrol prices hit a record high and that motorists would notice the extra expense over the Easter weekend. The AA reported that pump prices have now reached an average of 136.75p for unleaded and 142.72p for diesel, and compared with a year ago it now costs £7.46 more for petrol and £10.05 more for diesel for a typical 50-litre refill.

It is no wonder that people are doing all they can to find their nearest cheapest petrol station in order to save a couple of pounds and make up for the sudden increase in prices. Many people have started using special online search engines to find their nearest cheap fill-up point. The first website that is displayed in a simple internet search of "UK petrol prices" is a popular new website, aptly called 'petrolprices.com', that sets out to find the cheapest price of fuel based on a postcode or town name search. For even more convenience, you can get this programme available on certain mobile phones for when you're out and about. By signing up to this service, users can receive updates on where to get cheap fuel in their area and how much it is compared to other stations.

This is one way to help save money at the pumps. Another way is to consider what car you drive, how big the engine is and what type of driving you do. Lots of stop-start 'town driving' isn't very economical in a car with a big engine because a lot of petrol can be used in accelerating, heavy braking and changing gear. This is why there has been an increase in new, small city cars from manufacturers, aimed at people who whizz around town on short journeys. The small engine and lightness of the car itself can help to be economical for the driver. On the other hand, big family cars with bigger engines are better suited for longer journeys where the driver can stay in fifth (or sometimes sixth) gear on the motorway, for example. This works out more economical in a car with a bigger engine than a small city car which is why commuters often settle for a typical family-sized saloon or hatchback-style car that is more comfortable for longer journeys.

In the current economic climate, diesel cars are becoming more popular for the typical commuter as they're better suited for longer journeys as they can cover more miles on a full tank so it works out cheaper at the pumps. It's no surprise, then, that owners of big, heavy, gas-guzzling cars are wanting to sell them and buy something more economical.

Chris Elmes is an everyday commuter who has recently upgraded his car from a juicy petrol engine to a more economical diesel. He now manages to save a lot of money each month by covering more miles in his new car, so he is very happy with his purchase. I spoke to him to find out more...

Firstly, how long is your daily commute to work?

It is 20 miles to work every day and 45 minutes each way.

And what type of drive is it - motorways/A roads/town roads?

I use mainly A roads to get there and a very short stretch of motorway. Some of the journey when I get near to work is quite stop-start as I do travel through a town which can be very busy and congested.

What car did you have before you traded it in?

I had a Rover 75 estate car with a 2.5 litre petrol engine. Being a heavy car with a big engine, I didn't get very many miles to the gallon, probably at best acheiving around 30 mpg, which in these times isn't great.

Did you find it was costing you too much money to run your car in the end?

Because it was a high performace engine, it was more geared towards longer journeys, and I found that the shorter stop-start type journeys were making the journeys quite expensive as my commute was being made five times a week. A full tank of petrol would cost me about £70 and would last barely only a week, obviously meaning I was spending a lot of money each month. As most people would agree, that kind of money on just petrol was becoming tedious.

Did you try and find the cheaper petrol stations to fill up, or would you go out of your way to find one?

On my route to work I would pass a number of differnet petrol stations and I would ensure I would fill up at the cheapest garage possible. I wouldn't really deviate from my route just to find a cheaper garage as it wouldnt be worth the additional mileage.

What made you change your car?

I was thinking of chaging my car anyway, but the ever increasing price of petrol brought my decision forward, as it became a major contributory factor in changing to a more economical car. My old car was about 10 years old with mileage approaching 85,000, so a newer, more economical engine was going to help me save more money.

And what car did you buy?

I now have a BMW 320 diesel. I chose this car because diesel engines achieve a far better fuel consumption, with my new car now achieving 45mpg, an increase of some 50% on my old car. Although the price of diesel is slightly higher than petrol, the benefit in the additional miles per gallon results in a far greater saving for me. The savings I make on my fuel bill is partly financing the cost of this new car so instead of wasting money on fuel I have realised a new, more economical car.

Have you noticed a significant difference in costs?

The extra cost of diesel is outweighed by the extra mileage I can get with a different engine. Although it will be costing me about £5 more to fill my car up, I am achieving around 600 miles per tank verses only 350 in my previous car. A £65 tank of petrol was lasting me about a week in my old car but now a £70 tank of petrol will last nearly two weeks, which is an immediate saving.

Would you buy diesel next time?

With the cost of fuel seeming to ever increase and my journeys will probably be getting longer, I can't see me ever going back to a petrol engine. The performance of diesel engines has improved significantly over the years, and since I last had a diesel car about 15 years ago. This last diesel car I had was clearly not as advanced as diesels are today and people don't mind driving them now as they sound less like tractors!

The effect of increasing petrol prices appears to be getting to everyone. While not everyone may be able to afford to change their car because of it, people do seem to be doing more to either avoid using their car when they don't have to or to drive more economically in order to save the extra pennies.

Like Chris, however, many people depend on their car to get around and if there is no other convenient alternative, they are forced to pay to fill up.

Rianan Hogg is 19 years old and a student at Canterbury Christ Church University in Kent. She has her own car which she takes to university with her so she is able to get around. The only downside is that she has to fill up with petrol quite often in order to drive the 35 mile trip home at the weekends. I spoke to Rianan about how the increasing petrol prices are affecting her...

There doesn't seem to be a positive end in sight for motorists, so for now we have to pay whatever the petrol stations are charging us... if we have to use our cars. Public transport provides a simple and reliable mode of getting around, but soon, buses and trains may be so overcrowded that people will complain about that and we'll all be walking everwhere. Therefore, in the meantime (and if you can afford it), stick to your car.